The invention relates to a method for the automatic casting start-up of a strand in continuous casting installations, more particularly with molten steel flowing through a controllable sliding gate valve of a tundish into an empty mold above the starting rod, the rising actual metal level in said mold being guided along a fixed start-of-casting curve with characteristic times predetermined between metal-level distances and is controlled to reach a desired metal level adhered to by means of measuring and controlling devices during the pouring operation, causing the strand-pulling to be triggered.
Such a method is exemplified in West German Pat. No. 32 21 708, according to which the start of casting begins with an intermittent phase during which the valve is closed repeatedly in order to allow motions in the metal level rising in the mold to decay and thereby to bring about the conditions for accurately measuring the actual metal level. The intermittent phase is followed by a continuous filling phase, which is controlled by regulating the rising actual metal level by means of a linear controller as a function of a programmed start of casting curve.